Hawks at Rockets
THE STORY: The Atlanta Hawks have spent a lot of time recently playing like they don’t deserve to have a spot in the playoffs. Now that they have clinched a berth, the Hawks have finally started to turn it on. The Houston Rockets are still clinging to hope in the Western Conference, sitting in ninth place while the schedule gets smaller and smaller. The Rockets will be looking to gain some precious ground when they host red-hot Atlanta on Sunday.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, FSH
ABOUT THE ROCKETS (40-36): Three games behind the New Orleans Hornets (43-33) for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference with six left to play, Houston is watching its chances slip away with each passing day. The good news is that four of those final six games are at home, with one of the road games coming at New Orleans on Wednesday. That game won’t matter much if the Rockets can’t get around the Hawks and the Sacramento Kings first. They showed they still had some fight left on Friday, holding off a late comeback and downing the first-place San Antonio Spurs, 119-114, in overtime. Kevin Martin scored nine of his 33 points in overtime and Luis Scola collected 21 points and 14 rebounds to lead the way.
ABOUT THE HAWKS (44-32): Looking primed for a quick playoff exit when they were going 7-14 from Feb. 8-March 23, Atlanta has rediscovered the form that it needs to be successful in the postseason. The Hawks have allowed 87 points or less in each of the last four games, winning them all to finally gain some momentum. The last two triumphs have come against playoff teams Orlando and Boston, with the 85-82 triumph over the Magic on Wednesday providing a glimpse of the likely first-round matchup. The Hawks trailed the Celtics by as much as 12 points in the third quarter before surging down the stretch in the 88-83 victory. Al Horford collected 16 points and 15 rebounds and Jamal Crawford scored 20 off the bench to lead the way.
WHO’S HOT/WHO’S NOT: Martin has gone for 33 or more points three times in the last six games for the Rockets while Scola’s 14 rebounds on Friday marked his highest total since pulling down 15 on Feb. 1. Joe Johnson scored 19 points on Friday for Atlanta but shot just 4 of 20 from the field. He has shot less than 50 percent from the field in three of his last four games.
KEY STATISTIC: 83.4 points. The Hawks have dominated on the defensive end over the last four contests, limiting opponents to 83.4 points. Houston is one of the better offensive teams in the NBA, putting up 115.6 points over its last five games.
SEASON SERIES: The Rockets took the first meeting, 112-106, in Atlanta on Jan. 15. The since-departed Aaron Brooks led with 24 points and 10 assists while Scola scored 20 and Kyle Lowry and Jordan Hill chipped in 16 apiece. The Hawks had taken the three previous games in the series.
KEY INJURIES: ATLANTA: None. HOUSTON: G Terrence Williams (abdominal); C Yao Ming (leg).
LAST WORD: “Our sense of urgency is way up there,” Rockets forward Courtney Lee said. “We have to win them all.”